Drive from ATL to NH? Are We Nuts? (Atlanta, Manchester: chapel, good hotel)

[RoslynHolcomb]

Here's the situation: We'd like to go to NH this summer to visit relatives. Airline tickets would be approximately $1k. A real budget-buster and frankly out of the question. I wasn't looking forward to flying with my little guy anyway. Plus we'll be able to bring gifts, camping equipment, bikes and the like. So now we're trying to see if driving is feasible. We could probably do it in 2-2.5 days. We would probably stay in hotels with kitchenettes so we can prepare our own food and campgrounds would be an option as well. Is it feasible to do this for $500-700? Are there any websites that will help you plot out the trip and cost projections? I'm assuming that the charley foxtrot in the Gulf is going to send gas well past $3 this summer, but presumably it'll send airline prices higher as well.

Has anyone done this? Is there a website that would help us do price projections and plot the trip with reasonably priced hotels/campgrounds? We're not Triple Aers, though it might be worth it for this trip.

[im the hot one here]

Yeah i know it cause money but driving compared to taking a airplane is much more expensive because of gas. You guys will probaly have to fill up your tank every 7 hours i know that from be driving from Cincinnati to Oklahoma City.

[Adric]

My ex actually made that drive a few times to visit her mother there. It wore her out but it sure beats spending a grand on airfare. It's somewhere in the ballpark of a 18 hr drive I believe.

I would drive if I were in your position. Bypass the hotels and just take shifts at the wheel if possible.

[psulions2007]

Originally Posted by im the hot one here

Yeah i know it cause money but driving compared to taking a airplane is much more expensive because of gas. You guys will probaly have to fill up your tank every 7 hours i know that from be driving from Cincinnati to Oklahoma City.

Um, no. I drove from Nebraska to Florida for Christmas...and back. Roundtrip, my gas cost was ~$130. A plane ticket would have been ~$400+.


To the OP: You are not nuts, just remember that the only problem with driving versus flying is that you either need to take more time off to allow for the extra time to get there and back or shorten your trip.

Also, if you need to stop about halfway in between at a hotel, I highly recommend using priceline in advance. I usually got a very good hotel for around $50.

[painter62]

We do it all the time in the summer from New York. We do it because we like to bring our dog with us instead of spending the money on boarding him. From New York, we can be in Atlanta in 2 days. We get up early and drive as far as we can the first day. Then, the second day isn't so bad. We are a family of 4 and it is definitely cheaper than flying. And, believe or not, my kids prefer driving. But, they love hotels!
Not sure what route you will take, but do what ever you can not to get on I95.
It is brutal in the summer and can add hours to your trip. We go through Virginia up through Roanoke on highway 81.
Good Luck!

[DarkWolf]

Have you tired Amtrak , i would take 2 days and 2 Trains but it would only cost around 400$ round-trip. Gas is already creeping towards 3.50$ here , and in most of the region. I hate to see what summer brings. Amtrak is 195$ form Atlanta to NYC & then form NYC to Portsmouth , you can also do Manchester,NH. In Boston you switch to a Intercity Bus. Form NYP to Portsmouth the lowest is 67$ the highest is 113$ depending on the time of day. Make sure you line up the train switch in NYC , i do it this way. If the train is scheduled to arrive at 1pm , i make sure i leave 4 hrs of flex time between the next train in case you hit a deal down the road. On the Amtrak train between Atlanta & NYC , you get a lounge car with snacks & drinks , a dining car with gourmet meals , & baggage check. You can bring your own food & drinks aboard the train that includes alcohol , although i would always ask about that. The seats are comfortable , the do go back and you can easily fall asleep in one. Kids ride for free , below 11 years old? I'm not to sure on that , there are tables and other stuff to do on the train. Your not stuck in your seats like on a plane or in ur car.

Amtrak

[RainyRainyDay]

We drove from Cobb County to Ottawa, Canada and back at Thanksgiving, to visit family. That's further than New Hampshire, obviously. I personally drove all but a couple of hours of the way there as husband was in a work crunch (sigh) and spent most of the trip in the back seat with his laptop, finishing an urgent assignment. I've never been a road warrior in the least, but I guess I was psyched and it was fine.

We headed out early on the first day with plenty of sandwiches, fruit, etc. in a cooler. Had dinner at a fast food restaurant, overnighted at a Holiday Inn Express (includes breakfast), ate a hearty breakfast next morning, stopped for lunch at a Subway and arrived in Ottawa in plenty of time for dinner at our relatives' home. The return trip was similar (except that husband was sharing the driving rather than working on his laptop, thank goodness).

We were driving our Honda Fit, which we'd only had for a few months. So we had no worries about breakdowns, and great gas economy. I wouldn't want to head out on a trip like this with a vehicle of doubtful reliability.

Husband was powering his laptop computer with a power converter that plugs in to the cigarette lighter. I'm mentioning this because I'm thinking of your little guy. If you own a laptop computer and want to put in some long driving days, you might want to think about buying one of those power converters so you can use movies and games on the computer to keep him from going stir crazy in the back seat.

Good luck!

[roxyrn]

We drove from Long Island to Atlanta last March but made stops in DC (touristy things) and Chapel Hill (visit daughter) so the trip was spread out. Friends of ours drove straight through from Connecticut to Atlanta with their five cats- it is a 15 hour drive plus about 4 more hours to New Hampshire.

If you are traveling I95, do not forget to factor in cost of tolls as they can add up. The "back" Virginia-Pennsylvania route is a bit nicer with less tolls but substantial truck traffic.

Have a safe trip!

[flyonpa]

I've Driven to NH 2x, from atl, Dollars were close driving vs flying with my son. We left ATL friday night stopped in charlotte, for the night got to nothern NJ Sat afternoon. Where my sister lives, Sunday me, Son, Sister went up to NH. Comming home we stopped in NJ and went to DC for 3 days. If we flew we would not be able to do the DC part of the trip. Plus we went up for Christmas so we had all the Gifts and stuff, both ways that I would have had to UPS if we were flying. And my Dad had a bunch of stuff in his house in NH that i wanted to bring down to GA, that would cost to much to ship, and it realy not worth shipping. I did i85 -> I77 - I81 -> I78 -> I287 - I84 - ..... One the way back went to DC so took I95.

[noah]

If you want to look at true costs figure $0.50 a mile for gas and wear on your car. Then add in hotels, food etc and you have a good number. Other factor is time if your on a limited vacation time frame like most of us.